


Echotale

by phantomthief_fee



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Echotale, F/M, This story is just me writing out yoralim's comics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-15
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2018-12-30 07:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12103392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomthief_fee/pseuds/phantomthief_fee
Summary: Frisk came to Mt. Ebbott to warn the monsters of the impending attack upon them, but things didn't exactly go as planned.(Basically just writing all the comics)





	1. Nightmare

_Mt. Ebbott loomed high in the dusky twilight, just as it always had, casting its long shadow across the village below. Human bustled about in the streets, going about their daily routines. Every so often, one would cast their eyes toward the mountain and shudder before returning quickly to their task. No one noticed the small child slipping away through the trees. The child would not be missed for an hour or so. Their parents were busy and had sent them away to play. As the child made their way up the rocky slope, the words of the villagers echoed in their mind. They paid no heed to the branches and thorns that scratched at their exposed skin, nor the pebbles that caught in their shoes._

 

> _I heard whoever climbs that cursed mountain disappears forever-_
> 
> _swallowed by monsters_
> 
> _There are really monsters down there, you know!_
> 
> _We should make that mountain disappear too…_
> 
> _People fall down there I heard_
> 
> _My child got lost there_
> 
> _My sister too_
> 
> _I heard terrible noises coming out_
> 
> _I saw a huge yellow tail_
> 
> _**We have to destroy it as soon as possible…** _

_The child entered the cave at the top, stopping at the edge of the hole, the one that led to the heart of the mountain. An abyss stared back at them, the darkness almost beckoning. The child let out a hoarse laugh._

_“The real cursed place is the one I just ran from, idiots.” They muttered. “I won’t go back.” There was no turning back now. If they survived this fall, they’d find the monsters and warn them. The child had seen them in their dreams, and they weren’t scary at all. There were families down there, just the same as there were in the village. So what if they looked different? That was no reason to rain down destruction. If ever their life had held meaning, it was now. They had to be brave. They had to stay determined. They couldn’t let that wretched village destroy this mountain. The child took a deep breath and clenched their fists, steeling themselves for what they were about to do. Dirt spilled into the crevice as the child drew closer to the hole. Then they jumped._

_Frisk awoke to golden flowers, and a hand stroking their cheek and playing with their hair. They’d never seen flowers so bright before. They tried to move, tried to identify their companion, but their body refused to move. A few coughs escaped. Their whole body ached. It was understandable though, given what they’d done._

_“Good morning.” The person playing with Frisk’s hair spoke, a calm and gentle voice. “You survived, just like me. And…I feel we share a common goal. Our feelings match.” The speaker gently pulled Frisk up by their chin, revealing to the aforementioned human another child, nearly the same age as them but much more put together and altogether paler._

_“Let’s be friends.” The child proposed, smiling and hugging Frisk. “I’ll help you free the monsters here, and take revenge on the ones who hurt us.”_

_“N-No.” Frisk said, willing their voice to stop shaking. “I…I didn’t come for revenge. It’s just…this mountain is a special place. I won’t let the monsters get hurt by those disgusting people.”_

_“Oh? But wouldn’t it be more fun to teach those people a real lesson?” An edge entered the mysterious child’s voice as they broke the embrace, holding Frisk by their shoulders at arm’s length. “I feel deep inside you a terrible thirst, the same as mine. Just…sleeping.” They began to laugh, their face distorting, their eyes and mouth becoming voids that dripped black ooze._

_“E̡V͡EN̨T̴UA͡L̨L̵Y͘ ̨YOŲ WILL̴ ̧WAKE͠ ͝UP͟ A̸N̴D̡ TRY̷ OU͘T̸ ̛WH̶A̷T̷ ͠I͘ ͏D̢ID͞ TOO!̢” The child howled with laughter, their voice as distorted as their face. “H͘OW ͡GOOD͞ ̢N͜ONE ̕OF US ͡N̶ȨE̛D҉ ͢B̶E̶ ̴AL͏ONE ̛A̵NY͟MO͠R̷E IN ͘O͘UR PLA҉NS̶! ̵I’̶LL͠ B͜E͠ HERE FR҉IS̵K̡!!”_

Frisk sat up in a cold sweat, gasping for air like a drowning man. They tried to shake it off, standing up and discarding the ragged cloth they’d used as a blanket. They found G sitting on the roof of what might have once been his sentry station. No. It was Sans’ sentry station. They weren’t the same, Frisk reminded themselves.

“There are no dreams about the past. You just rewound what you experience before entering this place” G said, blowing a cloud of smoke thoughtfully into the air in front of him. “Still sounded like a classic nightmare though. I have those too.”

“Yeah. I heard you.” Frisk leaned against the back of the station. “….Last night you talked in your sleep.”

“Wow. You make it sound so embarrassing.” G glanced back with his usual almost apathy. “Not sure if I should sleep near you ever again, Frisk.” A moment of silence passed between the two of them before G grinned.

“It was a joke, kid.” He said. Still no response from his companion. G tried again to lighten the mood.

“I pretend smoking calms me down. I’d offer ya a cig but…it really wouldn’t suit you.” He hopped down, some snow falling in his wake as Frisk sunk to the ground, knees up to their chest. “Sooooo…You need comforting, huh? What else could I do?” What else could he do? Frisk squeezed their eyes shut. G was a good traveling companion, sure, but they didn’t place much stock in his ability to properly deal with emotional problems.

“How ‘bout this?”

Frisk’s eyes flew open as they felt the sole G’s foot press against theirs. They were the same size, or at least their shoes were.

“Better?” He asked, smoke drifting in front of his face. “….I remember we used to do this…Well…He used to. You liked it.” Frisk drew their foot quickly back towards them, curling up as if to protect themselves.

“…P-Please, don’t do that.” They murmured, refusing to look at G. G made a clicking noise that he logically should not have been able to make given his lack of a tongue.

“Right. Sorry.” He said, just barely keep a grimace on his face. “Another thing that’s only between you ‘n my better half.” He dropped the facade and glowered at the snow around them. “So ya want the cig after all? Because-”

“Sheesh…don’t get me wrong again.” Frisk said, trying to hide their bright red face. “I-It’s not really…because of Sans…Uh…” They stumbled over the words, G’s smirk growing with each mumble. “Just…It was okay. When…Sans did that I was a kid. A real kid. But it’s kinda weird when you do these things so..uh…suddenly.”

“Oh? Okay?” G got up and moved forward, placing one bony hand on one side of Frisk’s head, almost pinning them to the wall. “How about lullin’ you to sleep my way then?”

“Sure. Since you’re oozing sympathy you can throw me a piece of it…if…you…dare.” They sort of trailed off at the end, unsure how to keep their bravado up. Why did G have to be so close?

“Wow, what an icy block we have here.” G laughed. “But your face is burnin’. If you’d fall asleep now, you’d prolly have a…uuuhh…different kind of nightmare?” He stopped as Frisk’s face went even redder. “Whoa, whoa there?! Already cheered ya up, see-?”

“SERIOUSLY?!” This was quickly followed by an uppercut to the skeleton’s jaw, leaving him staring up at the flat sky. Frisk retreated back into themselves. G was right, though. If they fell asleep now, a new nightmare would surely follow. Maybe one…about never meeting him in this life. They felt horrible about thinking such things, of course, but they couldn’t help it. They were overwhelmed by emotions, awash in a sea of conflict, confusion, and fear. After all, their closest friend was trapped inside their companion, wanting to get out. That was why they had to do this. They had to set the timelines right. Everything had to go back to the way it was supposed to be. This was no time to be getting flustered either. They needed to be honest with their feelings. They stood, briefly brushing some non-existent dirt off their shorts and tights, then sat down next to G, laying their head on his.

“I…really want to know which half made you into such a pervert, G!” They proclaimed, summoning up as much indignation as they could.

“Huh?” G laughed, or at least made an exhalation that could be taken as a laugh. “Really…Did you forget that I have a personality of my own by now? I’m not just two halves glued together.” The hint of bitterness in his voice wasn’t lost on Frisk. They tried to push away the guilt they felt at reminding G of who he wasn’t.

“But…I feel that one of those parts cares deeply for you. And so do I,” G said, dispelling the bitterness and putting his hand on Frisk’s, their fingers weaving in between his, tracing the edges of his holes.

“I know G.” They said, leaning into him more. “I do too.” They’d always wondered how a skeleton could manage to be so comfortable without having any flesh on them. Closing their eyes, the young human could almost imagine that nothing was wrong. With him, they would be alright. He wouldn’t let them down. 


	2. Blue Lab

It had been a normal day in the lab. Or at least, as normal as it could be with people like Sans and Gaster around. Alphys peered through the observation glass into the room before her. It was just sitting there, knees hugged to its chest. She’d always thought humans did more. This one was nothing like the humans she’d seen in Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, although she’d always somehow known humans didn’t actually look like that. Still, she had sort of hoped they’d be interesting like that. This one…This one seemed as ordinary as a human could possibly be. Its hair was brown, its skin was the same color as a paper bag, and it wasn’t exactly wearing anything terribly flashy. She hadn’t heard it talk since it had given its message to Dr. Gaster. It seemed so young. Where was Sans? He was supposed to be here to help.

“Soooo, you captured a human? How?” She felt a sudden pressure against her back and Sans’ voice cut through the tense silence.

“Y-You r-really need to stop doing that!” She spun around and snapped as best she could, hoping her voice wasn’t shaking too much. “A-And no…It came on their own, actually….To warn us of…uh….Human action. They want to help.”

“Why would they do that?” Sans asked, his usual smile turning downward. She’d never been able to understand how he did that.

“T-They only came today. The ruin-keeper informed us. S-So not many -uh… details are known.” Alphys said. “We escorted them here immediately in s-secrecy. So as not to cause hysteria in town.” She turned back to the window, pressing a hand against the glass. Sans came up beside her, hands shoved firmly in his pockets.

“….They look kinda lifeless. Are they hurt?”

“Don’t think so. N-Not physically anyway. Their wounds healed up.”

One hand came out of Sans’ pocket to rub the top of his head, presumably in a gesture of confusion and disbelief.

“So….This human wants to…help with their DT?” He asked. “They look like they need their own shot of it.”

“T-That’s why I called you over!” Alphys suddenly gained enthusiasm as she turned to the skeleton, her tail flopping nervously against the floor. “I know this was supposed to be your day off to celebrate with your brother, but….we need you to cheer them up. A little bit is enough, really! I-I’m not good at this, even with myself, and…uh…my ways cheering up wouldn’t be…Uh…” She broke off in nervous laughter. “Anyway! W-We really want to keep the human a secret from the citizens until we figure out exactly what to do with them.” She put her hands on Sans’ shoulders. He could see desperation in her eyes. “S-So….Uh…Sans…Could you please….Uh….Do….Your thing? To make them comfier.” She was hyperventilating a little now. He supposed she’d been working up the courage to ask for hours now.

“My…thing, huh?”

Frisk sat in the room, atop two or three cushions that the nice dinosaur lady had given them. The silence was the worst part. They could hear faint voices outside, but the walls and windows seemed to mostly have been soundproofed. They were left alone with their thoughts and the occasional sound of some machine. How many times had they stared at the ceiling of their room, taunted by that same silence? They wanted someone to come, to tell them that their message had been heard and that the monsters would act on it. Anything to rid them of this terrible suffocation.

“Ey! You look very…grounded buddy.” When the voice came, Frisk nearly fell off their cushions. They turned around quickly. A skeleton stood behind them, leaning on a wooden chair. They assumed the monster was male, judging by the voice and the way the clothing fell on the body. They weren’t even sure how it looked like the skeleton had a body. It was just bones, wasn’t it?

“Chair for a relaxin’ sit?” The skeleton asked. Well, it would be nice to have a chair to sit on. Their butt was starting to go numb sitting on the floor. So they picked themselves up and sat down. The silence was broken once more by an obnoxious farting sound. Frisk’s face burned. They had not done that. They had not farted. They were sure of it. They would have felt it!

“Whoa there, I didn’t mean that relaxed!” The skeleton laughed. “But since I don’t have a nose, I’ll let that one…slip.” They hadn’t done it! They hadn’t. Frisk’s lip started to tremble. The skeleton sat down in front of them, seeming to read the mood.

“I’m Sans, Sans the….skeleton. Uh…The ol’ whoopee cushion on the chair trick…Well…It may not be funny sometimes.” He said, grinning up at the child. “Sorry about that. So…Uh….You got a name kid?”

“F-Frisk.”

Alphys relaxed. She’d been a little worried there, what with the whoopee cushion joke. Sans’ humor could do a lot of good, but not everyone understood his jokes.

“Looks like it’s going to be better after all, Dr. Gaster.” She said, looking to her boss. “Calling Sans was a great idea!”

“The human is responding, good.” Gaster mused, his gaze fixed firmly on Sans and the child. “My my….He always knows all the shortcuts. Even to a person’s heart.” He paused. “Let’s give them some time….To make this their home.”

It was a slow process, to be perfectly honest. Frisk didn’t seem to trust easily, and they kept mostly to themselves. But Sans had opened a door, and before the child knew it they were taking walks in the garden of golden flowers with Sans and the mysterious doctor, playing fetch with Endogeny, talking with Alphys about anime.

“Look what I found!” Alphys announced, holding the battered DVD case like a trophy. “It’s a completely new one! It washed up today!” She started to stutter once she was faced with Frisk. “Uuuhm…D…Do you m-maybe wanna….?”

“Sure.” Frisk replied, laughing. Watching it was an…interesting experience. Frisk wasn’t entirely sure what was going on, but they were certain they shouldn’t be seeing it whatever it was.

“…..You found this in the garbage dump?” Sans asked.

“….Yeah….”

“Well, it certainly seems to belong there! Turn it off!” He covered Frisk’s eyes as best he could as the other scientist ran to take it out of the DVD player, yelling at the skeleton that she hadn’t known.

The sounds of Alphys and Sans yelling at each other became a familiar and comforting noise. They were playing cards in the middle of the lab, Frisk perched on their chair as always while Sans and Alphys sat on the floor.

“I know you’re cheating! You always are, Sans!” Alphys said, fighting to get a look at Sans’ cards.

“You’re just a sore loser.” Sans grinned and held his cards just out of the lizard’s reach. “Now pick one, like the Schrodinger thingy. You won’t know which…Oh.” The skeleton trailed off at the sight before him. Alphys followed her coworker’s gaze and was stunned into silence as well. Frisk had lowered themselves off the chair and onto the floor. They smiled, stretching their legs out in front of them. Alphys and Sans echoed the expression, overjoyed at their friend’s leap. Sans grinned and put his foot against Frisk’s.

“Boop! That was a super secret monster sign.” He said, winking. “We’re solemates now, bud!” Frisk blushed and looked down. 

Their fun was abruptly interrupted as the royal scientist entered the lab.

“It looks as though you’ve settled in quite nicely.” He said, voice heavy with lack of sleep. “Are you enjoying your stay?”

“Ah, Mr. Gaster.” Frisk instinctively drew their foot away from Sans, returning to their curled safety position. “Sure…Uh…It’s a very warm place. Much warmer than on the surface.” They knew it was rude to feel so ill at ease around this man, especially after he had taken them in, but something about him just scared the child.

“I see.” The scientist nodded. “But do not forget, it’s still a prison to us monsters. You claimed you wished to help us, that being the reason why you are here, and now is the perfect time, child. I would like to try something.” He turned away, walking brusquely to a different part of the lab. “All of you, come with me. We’ve got work to do.”

“He looks scary, but don’t worry.” Sans leaned over and addressed Frisk in a stage whisper behind his hand. “None of us picked the face we were born with.” It was a small, perhaps inconsequential gesture, but it did make the child feel better as they got into the machine. It looked like some kind of giant monster skull with tubes connecting it to the control panel the scientists were now huddled around. Frisk had perched themselves on the chair in the middle, one hand over their heart, the other clutching the edge of the seat so hard their knuckles were going white. The three scientists put on their safety goggles, and Gaster gave the signal to begin. The machine began to vibrate, the monitors spat out readings and charts. It felt as though the wind had been knocked out of Frisk. Their heart was pounding, a faint pulsing red glow emanating from their chest. They tried to focus on that. They had to harness their determination for this to work. That was what Sans had said. Then, as suddenly as it had all begun, it stopped. The graphs leveled off into a flat line.

“D-Did it work?” Frisk asked, voice hoarse.

Sans exchanged a look with Gaster and pushed up his goggles. “I’ll go talk to them.” He made his way over, careful to keep a smile intact as he peeked inside the skull-like machine.

“Looks like somethin’ uh…Went a little wrong there?”

“O-Oh?” Frisk swallowed, gripping the material of their shorts. “I don’t understand…I-I tried really hard to focus…And…” They were on the verge of tears.

“Maybe you’re just too tense.” Sans patted the child’s head. “The machine can’t read conflicted feelings. Its purpose is solely to extract DT. You can’t hesitate in the slightest. I know you really wanna help us, so how ‘bout this? Replay the first time you entered this place with that strong resolve to help us! Feel it!” Frisk nodded slightly, looking up at their skeleton companion.

“Don’t worry about anything else, okay? You can do it! I’m really rootin’ for ya, kid!” And with that, he was back at the control station with Gaster firing up the machine again. Frisk closed their eyes.

_My feelings…From when I entered…_

_My feelings…._

_From-_

Their eyes snapped open. The whole room shook as though an earthquake was happening. Beams of light shot from the eye sockets of the skull machine.

“Oh my god, the readings!” Alphys ran over to one of the printouts. “These are i-insane! Dr. Gaster!! Look!!” While his coworkers marveled over the readings, Sans’ focus was solely on the child in the machine. He took off running as soon as it all stopped.

**“Hey! Kid!”**

.

Two children floated in the blackness, one looking quite a bit more put together than the other.

“Seems our little fight smashed the machine. You struggled so hard…” Chara said, glancing at Frisk while resting their chin on one hand. “I could feel the Core’s power rising up with you. Guess I always get the short end, no matter what.” They laughed. “But this made me decide to stay with you for awhile, Frisk. It’s fun fighting for control! Really entertaining.” They floated down to cradle Frisk’s face in their hands. “Better than those stupid jokes that com-”

“Sa-” They were cut off when Frisk began to push the syllables out, trying to say his name, trying to get his attention. “Sa- San-!!” Then they were being pulled into the light, out of the in-between place they shared with Chara. Sans’ face was the first thing they saw when their eyes opened. He sat next to their bed, Endogeny hovering on the other side.

“Ey! You okay there?” He really did look worried.

“The experiment!” Frisk sat up bolt upright, immediately regretting this decision as the dizziness hit them. “Did we…? I-Is the..?” They could barely see straight, but they had to know. They had to know if they’d done it. Sans exhaled through his nose hole and smiled.

“Yeah.”

Frisk could have cried. They wrapped their arms around Sans and squeezed. “I’m so so relieved! I was afraid it wouldn’t work!” Sans, however, did not share their enthusiasm. Especially not after his little “talk” with Gaster.

“Interesting…This kind of scenario was beyond my calculations. Interesting. Yes. Yes.” The doctor stood with his back to Sans, looking over the printout. “Things pointed towards failure at first…The initial chaos melted into a pattern. The machine detected a strong force, hidden in a corner of the child’s heart. No…No!” The doctor’s voice gained more energy, containing an almost manic glee. “Not just one! Interesting…We will have to rebuild the machine, Sans.”

He turned around, a demented smile on his face as he shoved the printout readings in Sans’ face. “Look at these two. Like night and day! Dancing within one powerful soul in a crazy pattern. Both are determination, just of completely different natures….different density and manifestation.” He pulled the printouts back, gazing over them. “After you talked to the child, the first pattern -meek and fearful- ignited like a fire, summoning a second source of a very powerful DT in a manner of nanoseconds! How?! Why?! I need to find out Sans! So exciting! So interesting…Yes. Yes.”

“Y-Yeah….” Sans couldn’t smile, not in this moment. He’d never seen Gaster so excited about anything, but it wasn’t an ordinary excitement. “….How ‘bout we…Uh, let the kid….Rest for a….”

“Tell me exactly what you said to them!” Gaster grabbed his assistant by the shoulders. “What did you discuss before the second experiment. Be as precise as possible!”

Sans shivered at the thought, holding Frisk tighter. He didn’t want to think about what Gaster had planned for this kid. Sans was jolted from these thoughts by Alphys’ nervous stuttering. Sans took a moment to compose himself, then flashed Alphys one of his winning smiles.

“Come sit with us, Alphys.” He said, beckoning her over. Alphys happily came over, arms full of “human history books” she’d brought from home. Now that they had a real live human she wanted to know more about the things she’d found.

“So these “human history books” are called “comics”?” Sans asked after a brief explanation from Frisk. “I like it.”

“I-I brought you the b-best ones!” Alphys said, dumping her armful onto the bed.

Sans looked over at Frisk, noticing the human was much quieter than usual, staring intently at one particular comic. “Hey! Kid! Whatcha starin’ so hard at? ….Kid?”

“A-Ah! So-Sorry I spaced out!” Frisk flushed. “…You see…This particular story…I wanted to read it for a long time. But I wasn’t allowed to buy…or read comics at home. I hard so much about this one…” They trailed off, causing Alphys to giggle softly at what a nerd they were. “It’s even better than I imagined, so…I’m happy.” Frisk smiled.

“Let me see Which one…?.” Alphys reached over, causing Frisk to go an even brighter shade of red and stammer as they tried to stop Alphys from looking at it. Eventually, the lizard wrenched it away and she and Sans got a good look. A grin split Alphys’ face, while Sans paled, or at least he would have if he could get any paler.

“Whoa, for real now- This??” He asked. “Frisk, this is…A quite, uh…Violent comic? Sci-fi stuff too..”

“Y-Yeah, at first glance. But it’s so much more.” Frisk’s eyes lit up as they spoke about the comic, their blush deepening. “The main character is doing the right things inside a very cruel place, y-yet he’s so kind and selfless…strong and clever..Ah..”

“He’s also a hottie.” Alphys added.

Frisk tried to hide their face under the covers of the bed. “M-Maybe a bit.”

“You like this kind of guy?” Sans asked, smiling just a bit. “Wouldn’t assume-”

“W-Well…Yes..But…I mean it more like he’s an admirable person, til the end.” Frisk frantically tried to shift the attention off their preferences. “I really look up to him.” Sans looked at the comic cover, depicting a cool and calm young man in a hoodie, smoking a cigarette, then back at Frisk.

“I must look like a total loser to you.” He sighed.

“NO WAY SANS! YOU’RE THE COOLEST PERSON I KNOW!” Frisk’s intensity and volume shocked even them. “YOU DON’T HAVE THE CHANGE  A SINGLE THING!” They tapered off and started again. “I-I wish I’d met you so much sooner.”

Sans smiled softly, putting the comic down. “Heh, thanks! But you know who’s cooler? My brother!”

“Ah, Papyrus! I’d love to meet him someday!”


	3. Despite Everything

There were some days when they just walked in silence, when neither of them could muster up the energy to say anything. Those times weren’t so bad. It was enough for them to just be with one another. For now, they had stopped at another sentry station in Snowdin. G was sitting on the roof, smoking, oblivious to how utterly bored Frisk was. As they stared up at the skeleton, an idea formed. 

“Could you lend me your jacket?” They called up. G turned and looked down at them. 

“Huh? Why? Are ya cold?”

“I’m not. I just want to try it on. Please?”

G shrugged and tossed the jacket down, hitting Frisk squarely in the face. 

“Thanks!” They said through the dense fabric. They slipped the coat on. “Rolled up sleeves....You trying to look cool?” They laughed as they rolled the sleeves down. G just rolled his eyes, taking another drag from his cigarette. Frisk continued, humming to themselves. They pulled the hood up and over their hair. 

“It’s big...” They said, noting how the jacket hung on their figure, the sleeves almost engulfing their hands. “Was it...always this big?”

G glanced down at them. “What? Brings back memories?”

“Memories? N-Not quite...” Frisk said. Even so, they had a vision of walking with Sans and Papyrus, with them wearing Sans’ jacket. “Or? Oh, yeah. I know now.” Not a memory, but a vision of another timeline. 

“You’re pale.” G said, hopping down. “You judgin’ my fashion sense?” He was pretty sure he knew what was going on, but he didn’t want to outright say it, for fear of souring the mood even further. Frisk’s expression had grown solemn. 

“Here, you can have it back!” They shoved the jacket into G’s hands, crossing their arms and walking away. G, not wanting them to get into trouble, followed dutifully. He found them hunched on some stairs, hugging their knees to their chest. 

“We can’t rewind time, pal.” He said, settling beside Frisk. “Those...resets- They’ve been creating new timelines, but that’s not time travel. None of the same spots work so we can only advance. All the Frisks have been writing things on the same sheet of paper and-”

“I know. That’s not what bothers me, though.” Frisk interrupted him, lifting their head. “Sometimes I dream about all my other lives- It feels so real...As if those dreams were windows, perhaps, to lives we created...In better times, in slightly different spaces....Making **better** choices...or...even worse ones. This timeline is  **not** the worst I’ve seen so far.”

“So what’s the problem then?” G asked, trying to hide the testiness in his voice. “You know, I can’t be whoever you crave me to be based on those visions...I can’t go back to who I was before either...Even though...I’d like to.” He flicked away his cigarette. “You’re stuck with this depressing fusion of me in this life, pal. So if you want me to...cry because I’m not as  _ Sansy _ as when we first met-”

“What are you implying?” Frisk started to laugh. “It sounds almost as if you were jealous of your own self?”

“Pft! No way!” G avoided looking at them. It was a good thing skeletons couldn’t blush. 

“You’re fine as you are. I like you.” Frisk assured him. “I don’t care about  _ versions _ of you- It’s still you.

“Wow. What a relief.” G whispered. 

“‘Despite everything.’ Always you.” Frisk continued. “Maybe I...should simply accept that. I might be aching for things that never happened, I would’ve loved to meet everyone under different circumstances, but with such a cool friend like you I already have more than enough.”

“You’re the worst.” G muttered. “Sayin’ this stuff with a poker face.”

“You make the same face, G!”

“Yeah, but I’m not deliverin’ embarrassing speeches.”

“If we...get the Core to perform one last time...I want to be born again and befriend everyone. I-”

“Then you better stop the pouty sulky act ‘n work harder.” G said, standing up. “You had the spark when I saved ya. And there’s also the one thing all timelines do have in common.” He grinned. “If you decide to do something- You go through with it. You make everything possible.” Frisk had a sudden vision of Sans standing before them. 

_ ‘I’m rootin’ for ya, kid.’  _ Frisk smiled to themselves. They still saw Sans inside G. Despite everything, he was still there. 

_ I’m glad I got to meet you.  _


	4. Indirect

Both G and Frisk were breathing hard as they recovered from their sprint. 

“That was close.” G said in between pants. “Too too close. Thanks, kid!”

“No. Th-Thank  **you** , G.” Frisk gasped. 

“You saved my skin.” G insisted. “You saved me...That could’ve been....”

“Yeah. Our grave.” Frisk glanced back at the area behind them. Previously just a field, the ground was cluttered with spiked plates. The two of them had just barely managed to escape a spiky death.

“I checked that area yesterday, before departure. It reacted differently.” G pinched the area where his nose might have been. “We’ll have to be extra careful from now on. This might happen again.” He turned and kicked at one of the plates. “Tch! Stupid thing- You almost killed us!” He wobbled a bit, and the two of them began walking away. 

“Hey...You really give off a skeleton vibe, G. Tired?” Frisk said, only for G to walk face first into a mailbox. “Hey!”

“Don’t!” G said as Frisk rushed forward to steady him. “Just a bit tipsy here.”

“A bit?!”

“I haven’t used that much magic in....a while. Since the Core is whacky, I’m unsure of the magic source.” G leaned on the mailbox, his fatigue becoming a bit more obvious. “It was kinda infinite before, but who knows how it is now. I might even “run out” of magic soon.” 

Frisk’s eyes widened and they felt their body begin to shake. “Y-You’re not...dying...are you?”

“PFFFF. Wha-?? No.” G laughed. “You sound like a mom. Stop. Or...Do you wanna be my mom? Momsa? M-Mommy?”

“M- No?! I just...”

“You’ve been watchin’ too much crap with Alphys.”

“...I can be worried. You’re all I have, G.” Frisk said, lowering their voice. “If...something were to happen to you...”

_ I...I might not...be able to continue.  _

For a moment, G was silent. Then he grabbed Frisk by their chin. “Let’s make a few things clear, shall we... ‘Kid’!” His voice was uncharacteristically monotone and solemn. “I never intended this journey to become a ‘personal’ one. I just wanna help. You’re this world’s last resort to fix this chaos. And to be honest...I’m not even 100% sure about that yet. It’s my gamble on you, kid. You and your DT. I don’t know what to expect at the end of this but you better be resolved about things. Papyrus, Alphys, Toriel...Sans...You’re carrying the hopes of all the Underground. It’s not about the two of us- It never was. I was so sure you saw it that way too. So you better not act selfishly once decision time comes.” Then he let go of Frisk. 

“Gee...That...Uhm...” Frisk laughed nervously. “That was weird of me, huh? Sorry there. Of course, G. Thanks for...waking me up.” Now it was their turn to be solemn. 

G shrugged. “Since you’re awake, I’ll rest my bones over there for a few minutes. Can I count on you to watch my back?”

“Always.” Frisk said, their determination clear. If G could have blushed, he would have. 

“Sheesh...” He said. “What’s with you today, chum?”

“Here!” Frisk threw something at G’s head. Once he caught it, he found it was a beat up carton of cigarettes. There were still a few left. 

“For some extra HP.” Frisk said. 

“DID YA REALLY RISK YOUR LIFE FOR A PACK OF STUPID CIGS, KIDDO?!” G yelled, holding up the cigarettes. 

“Who’s the mom now?” Frisk said. “Also...They seemed...important to you.”

“I...Impo-”

“Ah, you also said these are your last pack.” Frisk continued. “We might not find more of these so...”

“So the stunt back there was...all because of...” Frisk had jumped into the field of spiked plates to retrieve one carton of cigarettes for G. His eye light went out. 

“Don’t say a word til I wake up.” He said, taking a cigarette from the carton. “Now I really need a rest from all questionable actions.” He made his way to the sentry station while Frisk perched themselves on a mailbox. Despite the fact that this was Snowdin, it wasn’t cold. Frisk supposed it was due to the fluctuating timelines and the combining locations. It was as nice a day as it could be. Frisk glanced back at G. He was slumped against the wall of the guard station. As they watched, his body went limp, his cigarette falling from his mouth. Frisk’s heart nearly stopped. They jumped off the mailbox, running over to G. He couldn’t be dead. He couldn’t be. As they got closer, though, they heard the sound of him snoring. 

“M...Mom...? Not...?” He mumbled in his sleep. Frisk stared at him as he continued to mumble out nonsense things. They put their head in their hands, then slapped their cheeks. How could they have overreacted like that?! It was ridiculous. They’d promised G not to make this personal. They glanced down at G’s dropped cigarette in the snow. Picking it up, they turned it over in their hands. Looking back at G, who had started drooling, they flushed. 

_ I don’t know where you got the idea that...you mean less to me than a pack of cigarettes, Frisk. If someone ever made you feel that way, then I’m sorry. But...you have to build up confidence. So you can one day trust in people who really care. Your self-worth mustn’t be dependent on anyone. Neither the resolve to do things that only you can do. You simply must do them, even if by yourself.  _

It had started snowing. Once G had woken up, they’d gotten back on the road. G was smoking and Frisk stayed quiet, admiring the way the snow fell. They’d seen snow before, many times in fact, but it seemed different today. Suddenly they felt a weight on their shoulders. 

“I was a tad harsh. Uhm...My bad.” G said, draping Frisk’s tattered blanket around their shoulders. “Now that I feel the smoke, I’m kinda...almost grateful? For what you did. You did it for me, after all.” He lifted up a fallen beam. “And such a crazy thing, even...uh...Uh...It’s kinda cool...If you did this only once, though, so...Don’t risk your life like that again, ‘k?”

“Yeah, okay.” Frisk flushed a little, ducking under the beam. 

“So...Is this the right direction?” G asked. Frisk was silent, avoiding looking at G as they tried to hide their blush. 

“Frisk?”

“Hm? Oh! Yes! Through the trees, boss.”

“Boss?” G looked at them strangely. 

“Uh...” Frisk laughed, pulling the blanket over their head. “It’s the right way. I know it is.”


	5. Flowerfield

“Look! A whole field of echo flowers!” Frisk squealed, running over. They and G had entered an area that looked an awful lot like Waterfall. Since it was Waterfall, it was raining, causing Frisk to use their blanket as a hood. They laughed and knelt in the flower bed. 

“Hey, why are you so quiet?” They asked. “Won’t you laugh with me?”

“There wasn’t a room like this in the Underground before.” G said. “The places these grow seem strangely...calm? It must be the anomaly’s fault.”

“Hmm?” Frisk got to their feet, returning to G’s side. 

“Snow in Hotland, ice ‘n lava in Waterfall, pipes growing in Snowdin. These shifts sure are creative.” He sighed. 

“What a beautiful anomaly though, don’t you think?” Frisk asked with a soft smile. For a moment, G just stared at them. Then he smirked. 

“‘Your gazing face is also beautiful-’ Is what you want me to say in response, right?” He said. 

Immediately, Frisk’s entire face went beet red. “W-What?! No!” Okay, maybe a little. “Where did that even come from?! I-Is that what you secretly think about?!”

“Don’t get too self-conscious there.” G laughed. 

“Don’t get too cocky o-or I might think or do something...UNEXPECTED, G!” Frisk sputtered. This only made G laugh even harder. 

“Now I’m curious. Like what?”

“Shut up!”

G had one last laugh, then returned to more serious topics. “Anyway, the whole underground is overrun with these. It can’t be a coincidence, and I’m sure it’s not random either. I tried to talk to them, but it seems they’re mute.”

“No, they still speak fine.” Frisk said. 

“Really?” G frowned. “I haven’t heard a whisper from them since the shift.”

“...I did.” Frisk flushed a little, rubbing their nose. “The other day, when I got upset, I couldn’t sleep so I snuck out and..sang a bit. A pair of these was growing there. They sang too.” G blinked, snorted, then started howling with laughter. 

“You must’ve traumatized them so much they won’t speak up, kid.”

“I CAN SING PRETTY GOOD, ACTUALLY!”

“Good thing I was sleeping.”

“YOU ARE SO MEAN!”

Their fight was interrupted by the soft sound of someone beginning to sing. 

_ Oh my head so heavy~ _

_ My step so slow~ _

“That’s your voice!” G said, grinning. Frisk really wasn’t half bad. 

“Yeah! See?” Frisk said. 

_ Oh my head so heavy in the nights~ _

_ All them doubts I have to fight _

_ Will I break? _

“That’s the song I...” Frisk’s smile began to fade. “The song I...sang.” As the song continued, they let the music wash over them, bringing back all the memories they didn’t want to remember. Falling down the hole in Mt. Ebbott, the experiments done on them by Dr. Gaster. They hadn’t been able to save Sans or Gaster. They’d been useless. Soon the song ended, and Frisk’s voice remained, beginning to sob as they spoke to the flowers. 

_ “Please...Please, I’m so scared. I’m tired. Will I really be able to fix all this? What if I’m just useless...like before? Everyone’s gone. I don’t want him to disappear too, dear flowers. I want to be with that person. I want him to be proud of me. I...I...feel all kinds of selfish things...but..”  _

Frisk jumped as they felt a hand on their shoulder. They turned to see G smiling gently down at them. They so rarely saw that sort of expression on his face. 

“It’s okay to be a bit selfish when the world is ‘bout to end. Just don’t lose yourself” He said, running a hand through Frisk’s damp hair. “Neither Sans nor Gaster asked your permission before acting selfishly. We just were.” That’s why this is happening. 

“These flowers replaced the golden ones, even in the throne room.” G continued, immediately rejecting the feelings he’d just expressed. They must have absorbed very strong magic and stored it in their form-”

“Can you hear us?” The voices of the flowers chimed, before erupting into a cacophony of voices pleading for help, pleading to stop. 

_ Do you understand now..?! _

“I do!” G whirled around, grabbing Frisk by the shoulders. “That must be it! Your feelings! Your voice!”

“Huh?”

“You woke them up again! They are conscious beings after all.” He said, sounding rather like Gaster when he’d encountered a scientific breakthrough. “They didn’t mimic. No...No...They  **felt** what you’ve...When you sang! The conflict within you resonated with their own inconsistency...And that of this whole place! It’s a chain reaction now! It looks like it might come to us on its own...if...” All of a sudden, the ground began to shake, and there was a shrieking sound. 

“What...What a painful sound!” Frisk clapped their hands to their ears. 

“Do you hear it, Frisk?!” G shouted. 

“Yes!” Frisk yelled back. “It’s...the Core’s voice...I think...”

“The Core is talking to us through the flowers!” G sounded as if he’d just had an epiphany. “After the shift, the Core gained self-awareness and fell into a deep despair. It lost the will, the determination, to perform magic for a conscious purpose. Whatever amount of sanity it kept, it must be stored within these plants! It used the echo flowers as a backup, to save the memory of the time when it was stable. To prevent its sanity from being erased by the anomaly completely!” He started to laugh shakily. “I seem to be strangely excited instead of feeling sorry. Gaster, ya freak. We should never have attempted that...Why did I let you do that....Why did they let me do that?” Suddenly he turned to Frisk, grinning. “Frisk!”

“Yes?!”

“We’ll use these to call the Core.” He jerked a thumb at the flowers. “In the end, it really was impossible to find it in this shifted place...It kept hiding in some unreachable plane.”

“S-So these are...” Frisk knelt and cupped one of the flowers in their hands. 

“A phone, yes.” G laughed. “You complained about not havin’ a phone. Well, now you’ve got the most phones to exist in any timeline. Happy?”

“Technically this is just one call, G! But sure!” Frisk laughed as well. “The other Frisks I met in my dreams have been phoning a lot. It looked fun. I was a bit jealous.” They paused, biting their lip. “But...What should I say?” G hesitated. This might be their only chance to make contact with the Core. If they played it right, they could get out. He smiled slowly. He had an idea. 

“Hey...A lil mouse told me a human with a striped shirt has a really good voice.” He said. “Care to sing me a farewell song?”


	6. Lullabyes

The room was silent, save for Sans’ labored breathing. He was on his back on the floor, staring up at the thing that was currently using Frisk’s body. The thing was suspended with bones, their appendages pinned so that they couldn’t attack. They had their knee on Sans’ ribs and was pressing hard, blood red eyes staring intently at Sans. 

“Frisk told you not to visit us alone. But I kind of expected you to be as dumb as you grin, comedian.” The creature laughed, their voice light and mocking. “You act like a hero, friend, yet...you always check the chains whenever the lot of you visit. You think Frisk never noticed?” They pressed their knee down harder. “People like you disgust me to the core. I might just vomit all over your face. All you give is this shallow positivity and act of sympathy while hiding your true feelings, pathetic little twerp. You think you can win anyone over with a few dumb jokes and that face, huh? Won’t work on me. Frisk shared many visions of other timelines, in which you struggle so much you have no idea.” The creature devolved into cackles. “I’d love to get into one of those realities- Or better yet, why not make this one into a nice playground instead?”

Sans just stared up at them, continuing to smile. “I got a glimpse of those timelines...” He said. “And after spending four years spent with this kid, I can tell.  _ This  _ Frisk won’t ever let you do  _ that _ .”

“Oh? You trust them so much?” The creature tilted their head to the side. “Then tell me. Why am I still chained? Why are you shaking like a leaf? Before you say, ‘Oh, but  **Frisk** was the one  **begging** to be chained after that  **incident** ,’ I’ll remind you. You watched it all happen. What a nice brother and friend you are, truly.” They snickered. “Gaster seemed to understand our suffering more than you ever did. He saw potential in me and my  **DT** . I enjoyed the talks with him so much more than those diabetes-inducing chats between you and Frisk.” They pretended to vomit before continuing. “But no matter how many heart-to-heart talks you had...You remained quite ignorant about Frisk’s insecurity. If you’d done some real thinking, you’d understand their fear of being tossed away after the experiment. For a comedian, you sure gave Frisk a lot of heartaches.” They paused to laugh again. “So really, your noble shtick will only have meaning if you cut these ch-” And then he did. The creature blinked, honestly not expected that. 

“So ya rather have me cater to your image of what you wanna receive in a half-boiled fashion, than me givin’ the little I can with all of my heart, kid?!” Sans got right up in the creature’s face, grabbing them by their collar. “Frisk decided that what we gave them was ‘enough’. It’s your problem that you can’t accept anythin’! In this place, those few smiles ‘n jokes are enough for people to warm up to ya. Why didn’t you ever try?! Even way back, when the king ‘n queen took you in, you isolated yourself. Even changin’ your name...You wanna be acknowledged as ‘Chara’, Frisk told me about it, but if you cut yourself off from us...Who will be left to acknowledge you then?” He seemed to deflate, smiling tiredly. “Why was I so afraid of a lost lil kid like you, I wonder. I really am no good, huh?” He leaned against Chara, wrapping an arm around their shoulders. “I’m positive that Frisk won’t ever let you take over like that time. Not without reason.” A moment later, Sans was shoved back. Their hands flew to their face as they fought back sobs. When they turned back to Sans, it was Frisk looking at him as they cried. 

“Wh...Why did you come...I told you not to.” They sniffled, tears spilling down their cheeks. “T-Today is the experiment, you dumb-ass!” Sans sighed and patted Frisk’s shoulder as they kept crying. 

“I...could’ve killed you...Why did you..?”

“My HP is pretty high, kid. This is just a mouse-bite.” Sans assured them. “You’ve been a brave fella, so I wanted to be real brave ‘n sincere too.” He wiped some of Frisk’s tears away. “...The Queen’s human kid, the one in you, they were right about me. In this timeline I’m mostly a nerd who tries hard in his dad’s lab, while being a real hero in a different one. You still acknowledged me, callin’ me ‘cool’ and whatnot. You gave me ‘n Papyrus warm memories, like a long lost sibling.” He laughed tiredly. “Even though I was suspicious of you at first, you came to trust me...So I’m here to pass a message to you from me and my brother. ‘We can be your home if you want’.”

“‘And once this experiment succeeds, we’ll help you and that freaky child find happiness.’ That’s what he told you that day. Such an aching spot in your memory.” Chara said, floating in the black mind space they shared with Frisk. “What a pure wish the comedian had, huh? He wished well to both of us. What an idiot. Gaster understood my darkness perfectly, that why I liked him. A strange uncle or imaginary friend. Bad with puns and weak against pranks to the point where we had to stop with the egg ones, fully. In the end, though, satisfying his curiosity as a scientist meant more to him than us or his sons.” They paused, mimicking Gaster’s voice. “‘Dark, darker, yet darker...Show us, how deep your heart can reach.’ Those last words to me before the experiment summed it up.”

“Gaster raised your darkness the same way Sans fed my light.” Frisk said, completely calm. “But not because he understood you. That was just our wishful thinking.”

“I know.” Chara said, equally calm. “He was curious what our clashing DT’s would do to the machine's readings.”

“I don’t think he foresaw the world ending up this way. Or literally ending.”

“This situation is very juicy to the likes of him. He must be longing to see beyond now.” Chara laughed. “Let’s not make him wait. The Core finally appeared, thanks to that little song of yours.”

“Not just that.” Frisk corrected them. “The Core said it needed our aligned emotions- Yours, G’s, and mine in order for us to reset. G had a hunch about things, though. It’s thanks to him that we made it this far.” 

“So somehow we can reset because we’re sincere.”

“Yes.”

Chara was silent for a moment, tapping a finger on their cheek. “Let me tell you something sickeningly nice for the  **first** and the  **last** time. Despite my nature I have found the time I spent with the two of you...somewhat enjoyable. Thank you for that thing you did...in the flooded throne room, too.”

_ They sat in what had once been their father’s throne room, the water lapping at their feet as they stared at the ruined pillars covering the entrance to what had once been the Ruins.  _

_ “The view of Mother’s gate is blocked by pillars from Father’s throne, yet they’re still facing each other.” Chara mused. “Interesting how the shift becomes less ‘random’ upon a proper look, like a heart’s landscape. Now I really feel like messing this place up.” _

_ “Do you miss your family?” Frisk asked. Chara’s eyes widened, their grip on the armrests of the throne tightening.  _

_ “Ask that again and I’ll cut you up instead.” _

_ “Did you forget? We threw the knife away a long time ago.”  _

_ Chara gritted their teeth, then decided to switch gears. They needed to get under Frisk’s skin somehow. “If I had known it would be this easy taking you over-” _

_ “That’s not it!” Frisk cut them off. “The longing for your new parents became so strong the moment we entered this particular room, that it startled me completely. I felt shame for my own lack of emotions. I haven’t felt this warm about my family ever in my life, so I let you overtake me. ‘Ah, so Chara feels things like this sometimes?’” _

“I’m sure as long as you hold on to those kinds of feelings, you can be saved.” Frisk said.

“Hmph. It’s your win this time.” Chara admitted. “But it might end differently after you reset.” They began to float away in their shared blackness. “I’ll give you and that guy some privacy. Make sure you call him  **properly** by his name, you clutz. He felt a common agony of not being accepted as an  **individual** . Since he’s part Gaster, I can’t completely  **hate** him, although at the start I undeniably enjoyed his suffering. Especially the kind  **you** make him feel. Don’t let your petty regrets ruin this chance, will you? Be thorough going about this.” Chara glanced back at Frisk, almost looking mournful. “I’ll be seeing you then, Frisk.”

“Yeah.” Frisk smiled. “See you in a while, Chara.”

_ Do protect me again, once we meet after the reset...I’ll make sure to save you too.  _

Frisk opened their eyes and sighed. G stood before them, hand on his hip. 

“Done talkin’ to that lil’ shit?” He asked, grinning. 

“Hey!”

“Good! I hope that spy is gone.” G laughed for a moment, before going serious. “....Are you ready yet? Any last remarks or questions? Any hidden needs?” He snickered a little. 

“I want to know something, G...” Frisk said, grabbing a handful of G’s hoodie. “Why on Earth did you end up looking...like this?!”

“You don’t like it?”

“I-I do!”

“Really?”

“Yeah!”

For a moment, a gentle smile crossed G’s face. Then he smirked. “How much do you like it?”

“....Answering that isn’t important.” Frisk said, their face going red. 

“Wow, is it that hard to explain?”

“Please just tell me.”

“Why didn’t you ever ask before?” G asked, taking a drag from his cigarette. 

“It felt rude...” 

“You did a lot of other rude things to me, kid.” 

“I’ll get to that in a sec...Just...”

“Okay, see here. Have you ever seen somethin’ that seemed insignificant upon a first look, yet the very same thing leaves such an impact, that it makes its way into your dreams?” G asked. “Or somethin’ like that annoying MTT commercial we saw at the spooky resort on replay.”

“Yes...?”

“My appearance was exactly like that to him. Because of a certain book he saw.”

 

Everything was frantic. The lab shook as the machine roared out of control. Sans jolted forward. He had to get Frisk out of there. He had to save them. 

“It’s no use! We can only observe!” Gaster grabbed his arm. “The phenomenon is affecting us already, so instead of doing something  **reckless** , let us observe!” All around them, reality was distorting, their forms beginning to dissipate. Then Alphys screamed. The skeletons turned to see the lizard woman’s form beginning to fade.

“I’m...so sorry.” She said. She’d dropped the comic she’d been clutching to her chest, the one Frisk was so enamored with.

“ALPHY!” Sans tried to pull away again, but Gaster held firm.

“I promised to give it back...once you...”

_ “It’s my most precious treasure that you gave me, Alphys. So could you hold onto it until I’m finished?” _

“Frisk.” Alphys began to sob. “I’m so sorry, Frisk.”

“A-!” Sans reached out for her, but she was already gone. Everyone in the Underground could feel the effects of the machine. The lava in Hotland began to boil, the caves shook, the water in Waterfall overflowed. 

“Pa-Papyrus!” Sans said. “We have to get to him, Gaster!”

“Don’t you ever listen to me?” Gaster asked, stroking the side of his son’s face. “I trained you for similar situations, son! So don’t you dare lose your cool. I’M ALREADY LOSING MORE THAN THAT.” He looked to the machine, a deranged smile playing on his nonexistent lips. “It seems the child’s clashing DT created a strong inconsistency. The Core’s power might have to do with this chain reaction that’s piling up. How interesting!” 

He turned to Sans again. “A person with a mind like mine won’t last very long, but you, Sans...Listen, find a pivot point, just like we practiced. Don’t let go of it no matter what. Don’t forget who you are, cling to that pivot with all your might! I will stay by your side somehow, to find a solution. You find Frisk and use them! I have a hunch that you can meet and fix this!” Gaster began to laugh in an extremely unhinged manner. “Oh! This is so exciting. So interesting! Let’s see it to the end, son! This child is extraordinary!” Then the two of them were falling through blackness, their forms beginning to distort. 

“Alphy? Frisk? Pivot point- This burnin’ sensation, whose is this one? Gaster? No...Papyrus? Why?” Sans murmured to himself. “I can’t quite define it. My head is spinning. I’m being sucked into a whirlpool of voices. Pivot point- Which one did I used to choose? My face my clothes my voice- Focus.” Voices crowded his mind, preventing him from clearing his mind. Voices. They were so loud. Tendrils of light crowded all around him. 

“Pivot point pivot poi- I can’t...” Sans pressed his hands to the side of his head. “There are too many thoughts at once!”

“I must save-” Gaster’s voice echoed. 

“Like a yarn ball, only made of minds....Pivot point...”

“You must fix it, Sans- Remember! Never forget Sans. Pivot point. No...No...” Their voices began to run together. “Who’s...San-s...? Who is...Gas-ter? Hold on! What child did...? Why who? Where? No, I have to get out! You did succeed before, focus! Pivot point.” The comic came into view. Frisk’s comic. 

“This one!!” The voice reached a fever pitch. “ _ My  _ last chance!! Grab it!  GRAB IT!! I MUST STAY HERE!!”

He sat up, breathing heavily. Everything was silent. He looked down at his hands, long and thin, with holes in the palms. The attire he was wearing was familiar, although he couldn’t immediately place why it was. He looked around. He was in a room filled with little blue flowers. Those, too, were distinctly familiar to him. He still couldn’t remember why, though. He couldn’t just stay here. So he left. 

“So that’s how you...woke up?” Frisk asked. “What happened after? Were you...scared?”

“Nah, I simply enjoyed the serenity of being alone in interesting surroundings.” G said. “In the beginning, I was without memories, but filled with a lot of sensations and knowledge. So I spent the next days sorting them out. I also gave myself a name, one you didn’t want to call me when we met, because of  _ him _ .”  Frisk recoiled slightly at that, but G continued. “I kept finding cigarettes on my strolls, as if they materialized for my sake. Probably somethin’ the shift kept doin’. Smoking them felt somehow calming.” 

“So...you strolled around and had a good time...” While Frisk was rotting in chains. 

“Pretty much.” G scratched his chin. “If it weren’t for  _ those two _ buggin’ me, you would probably still be chained in the lab. I had no idea you even existed, to be honest, kid.” Frisk almost groaned. They would have been a skeleton. 

“But once I found you, I regained all of their memories properly. A few crawled out much later though. Sans ‘n Gasterdude must’ve been really desperate with how I was after I woke up!” He laughed, then his face went stony. “I hated it. Guiding some person through this mess was the last thing I felt like doin’. But Sans and Gaster kept pullin’ me.” His expression changed again, softening to become more weary than anything else. “After one...experience...I decided that it’s kinda my duty to respect their wish to help you. I owe them my life, after all.”

“Did you dislike me?”

“...You made a long lasting first impression.” G chuckled. 

“Chara.” Frisk groaned. 

“But after that,” G continued. “You made me see you’re a good person. I just couldn’t place you, since ‘my memory’ of you was a lot different than how you look now.”

“Maybe I ended up this way because I made Alphys’ manga my pivot point?” Frisk suggested, even though they honestly couldn’t remember. 

“Then we’re the same.” G said, before lapsing into silence. He kept watching Frisk, a thoughtful look gracing his face. “I was wonderin’ about it before but now I’m sure...” He finally said. “Sans had his suspicions but no real proof.  _ Their  _ blood runs in your veins. The blood of the people who imprisoned us here. Am I right?” Frisk didn’t immediately answer, drawing their blanket tighter around their body. “Hey, what’s with the gloomy face, huh? Were you afraid of being ostracized by monsters?”

“I never told anyone and never consciously used magic either.” Frisk said. “It just suddenly started leaking out. My family suppressed it so I didn’t realize that...”

“He was a witness of the many bizarre small things happenin’ around you.” G said. You did tell him about hearin’ the Core’s voice, as if it was a sentient being.” Previously, G had been stroking the side of Frisk’s face, but they slapped his hand away. 

“Yes, I heard a voice.” They said, curtly. 

_ The stunt you pulled off to get my cigs, the race you’ve won against all odds in the forest, the frozen smoke and snow fallin’ out of nowhere...I’ve been keeping track of all these since the start. _

“The Core made it possible for all your small wishes to come true, by channeling your magic.” 

“Small wishes...” Frisk put a hand to their head. “The memory of my past is hazy...But I remembered it through nightmares. My relatives properly sealed my powers so I didn’t believe I could possibly cause a thing. When the extraction machine successfully ran, a part of me wished for destruction, while the other wished for salvation.”

“Yeah, so this time we have to be clear as day ‘bout what we want.” G said. “Then, the Core can understand and use all the magic at its disposal, with our allegiant hearts as its guide.”

Frisk smiled softly. “There’s something I need to say and do, before I can be at peace...” They paused and put their hands to their chest. “I came from the outside world, escaping an abusive family of wizards from the lineage of those who created The Seal. My name is Frisk, and I’ve been possessed by a soul named Chara, a child of the same lineage. I like dogs, songs, junk food, and pranks. I steal sheets when I sleep, snore, I smile at people I like...”

“Why’re you tellin’ me this?” G asked. “Most of these I knew already.” 

“Yeah, from Sans’ memories. But...I wanted to tell you directly. As the person standing before me.” 

For a moment, G was stunned. 

“We’ve spent a lot of time together.”

“You revealed yourself to be a liking for cigarettes, heights, mustard, and moms?”

“HEY!!”

“Despite all your teasing, you’ve always been respectful of my boundaries.” Frisk smiled themselves. “You never lost your childish curiosity and interest in science. You kept testing new things, checking the area for danger before departure, and being angry with my reckless behavior. You frown when you have nightmares, drool when you’re napping, and you have the most mischievous smile. You can act so distant, even cold, but can give off the warmest kind of feeling as well. You’ve been showing that side of you so often, and I forced myself to believe it was because Sans was a part of you but...Now I see the truth. You can be intimidating, but all this warmth, it’s coming from you, G. It’s  **you** I’ve undertaken this journey with. I was an idiot, a fool. Please forgive me my cruelty. ” 

The rain disguised Frisk’s tears, something they were glad of. “Those are so few of the very many things I’ve learned about you on our travels. After the reset...I hope you’ll keep on existing somewhere nice. So you can discover much more of what you want, and who you are. Not only in connection with me, this journey, or this warped place, G.” 

They looked up and smiled at G. “I’ll stay determined so I can help everyone to freedom. So you too, please, continue your travels. This was just the start. It can’t end for you yet. This is my wish for the person I’ve gotten to meet and know here...And fallen in love with...because of who they are.” 

“Tch. How embarrassing.” G smiled and pulled Frisk’s blanket over their head. With his other hand, he took Frisk’s hand in his, raising it to his cheek. Then he kissed it, gently, and pulled the smaller human into his embrace. Frisk’s blanket fluttered to the wt ground. Both of them were smiling, even as they separated and Frisk walked towards the Core. 

“This future is created for all of us. Including you, G.”

_ Yeah, no need to repeat it twice. It’s my wish too, kid. Don’t worry.  _

“Let me free something off my ribcage too, before you go.” G said, causing Frisk to stop and look back. 

“I’m all ears, G.” Frisk said. G slung the blanket over his shoulder, trying to look as cool as he possibly could. God he was glad skeletons couldn’t blush. 

“I’ve, uhm, complained a few times earlier ‘bout bein’ here stuck with you, instead of, let’s say, a h-”

“Ah, yes! Yes!” Frisk quickly turned away. “I know, yes.”

“I...I didn’t really mean it.” G’s words stopped them in their tracks. “I’m sorry if I hurt you.” He smiled at them. “I can say with pride ‘n confidence now, that this whole journey was a pleasure. I’m glad it was with you.” This made Frisk go bright red. “I didn’t feel that way all the time, definitely not every minute or second, but...I wouldn’t trade it for anythin’ in the world.”

“Thank you.” Both of them said together. Then Frisk turned away, touching their hand to the core. Immediately, the world began to shift and change, just like the event that had caused them to be stuck in this position. 

“G! Can you hear me?” Frisk’s voice echoed throughout the area. 

“Yeah!” He had to cover his eyes, the light was so bright. 

“Everything’s okay now. Both me and Chara are inside, peacefully resonating. I can feel the magic all around. It’s amazing! Now’s the right time to think about the wish! Feel it!”

“NEW SOUL.” A new voice boomed. 

“Is that...the Core’s...?!” G gasped. 

“In this split second between order and chaos, logic and miracles, it’s your chance to escape! Go! GO!” The Core’s voice resonated in his nonexistent ears, pointing him towards a shining door made of light. 

“G!” Frisk’s voice was distant now. 

“Do not hesitate, quickly, go forth! Bonehead!”

G glanced to the door. This was his chance to escape, to have his own existence. He started to move towards the door, his soul shining brightly. As he moved, two other forms began to appear behind him, that of Gaster and Sans. 

“I’ve witnessed your journey from the start.” The Core said. “Both of your companions and you have the same wish in your hearts. A ‘future’. Now is your only chance in this timeline. Good luck new one!” G’s soul darted through the door, to freedom, leaving Gaster and Sans behind. “As for these souls, and this world, it has to return to its original state, and fulfill the fate through the children, as has been foretold by the prophecy.” As the Core spoke, the Underground began to return to normal, the Save spots shining brightly in the dark world. And everything returned to normal. Frisk woke up, Chara by their side. They continued through their story, until they met Sans. No one noticed the pack of cigarettes and the manacles in the blue flowers. 


	7. Epilogue

“You can turn off the lights, Mom! I’m not a baby!” The boy said, snuggling up to his stuffed rabbit. 

“Oh?” His mother raised an eyebrow. “With all the junk and toys you’ve stuck under your bed, not even a tiny goblin could fit under there.”

“That was the plan.” Her son smiled smugly. 

“You still have to clean up tomorrow, dear.”  His mother kissed his head, then turned out the lights. The boy rolled over, snuggling with his rabbit and sucking his thumb. A moment later, an explosion rocked his bed. The boy’s eyes snapped open. He sat up in bed, whole body shaking. Then a leg stuck out from under the bed, clad in black jeans and a leather boot. The boy leaned over. A skeleton stared back at him from under the bed, dressed like some dumb edgy anime character. 

“You should clean up, kid.” The skeleton said, as best he could as he was being squashed by the bed and the toys. “This mess is  **monstrous** .” The child blinked, then screamed. 

“MOMMY!!” 

G was chased out of the house through the window, toys being thrown at him as he went. 

Life after that was...interesting. He slept where he could, on benches, in trees, barns, tents, good samaritans’ houses. He got his cigs where he could as well, either provided by his hosts or bought himself with money he’d earned through whatever jobs he could hold down. He was a zookeeper at one point, which was...interesting to say the least. Animals didn’t seem to like him all that much. Kids, on the other hand, kids freaking loved him. He’d wandered into a schoolyard one day, and had managed to befriend every kid in that yard. That landed him a job as a playground monitor for a time. He certainly preferred that to the mannequin job he’d landed. And he waited. Waited for the moment the Frisk of this world would be the Frisk he remembered. 

**Author's Note:**

> Echotale belongs to yoralim and Gaster!Sans belongs to borurou.


End file.
